Effect of boron in Fe70Al30 nanostructured alloys produced by mechanical alloying

The substitution of aluminum by boron in the Fe70Al30 system prepared by high energy ball milling is studied when the B content ranged from 0 up to 20 at. %, and the milling times were 24, 48 and 72 h. X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns of Fe70Al30 showed a predominant bcc structural phase with a lattice parameter larger than that of alpha-Fe. A second (tetragonal) phase arose with the addition of boron. It is associated to the existence of (Fe, Al)(2)B, although the values of the lattice parameters are slightly different from those found in the literature. This phase shows high stability; its lattice parameters and the Mossbauer parameters do not show notable variations, either with milling time or composition. It was also evidenced that an increase of boron content and of milling time produced a decrease of the lattice parameter of the Fe-Al bcc structure. This is in agreement with the small atomic radius of boron in comparison with that of aluminum. This also allows boron to occupy interstitial sites in the lattice, increasing the grain size and giving rise to the ductile character of the alloy. On the other hand, 300 K transmission Mossbauer spectra (TMS) were fitted, for low boron concentrations (< 8 at.%), with a hyperfine field distribution (HFD) associated with the bcc phase. For high boron content (a parts per thousand yen8 at.%), a magnetic component related to the tetragonal phase is added and its broadened lines are attributed to the disordered character of Fe2B, probably induced by the milling process.